Saturday, December 3, 2011

Shepherd watching his sheep is an excellent advent decoration on its own, that then blends in quite well with the felt Holy Family Nativity Scene

Sunbula is a Jerusalem-based nonprofit Fair Trade organization that supports Palestinian craft producers -- women‘s groups, artisan cooperatives and disabled people‘s organizations. By promoting traditional handicrafts locally and internationally, we support economic self-help efforts of those living in difficult conditions in the occupied West Bank and Gaza Strip, and the Palestinian minority inside Israel.

Sunbula is Arabic for "spike of wheat," the flower that makes bread. As the name symbolizes, Sunbula helps people provide themselves with the gift of a more dignified life.

ORDER SOME TODAY... they are perfect for the home, can be tucked most anywhere and then after Christmas, because they are lightweight and yet durable, they are easily stored for another year. Don't forget to buy extras for friends as they make a perfect gift and most any one who touches one wants one!

BETHLEHEM (Ma'an) -- Palestine has been selected as a winner in a poster competition conducted by the United Nations world tourism organization's biannual Vettor Giusti Prizes.

UNWTO's secretary-general Taleb Rifai announced Palestine's win over Saudi Arabia for the Mideast region during a session of the organization's General Assembly in late October.

The winning poster depicts Jericho's St. George Orthodox Monastery in Wadi Qelt, a West Bank oasis that is also home to one of the oldest synagogues. George is considered the patron saint of Palestine.

Palestinian Authority minister of tourism Khuloud Deibis said she was pleased with the achievement. She expressed hope it would shine a spotlight on tourism in Palestine and in Jericho in particular.

The posters competition is held every two years on the occasion of the sessions of the UNWTO General Assembly, to showcase the posters used to promote tourism around the world.

UN member countries submit one entry per region. In the Middle East, Palestine and Saudi Arabia submitted entries, according to a 2011 competition list on the Vettor Giusti Prizes website.

Tuesday, November 29, 2011

UN official urges greater support for Palestinian refugees

United Nations News Service (Opinion) November 29, 2011 - 12:00am http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=40534&Cr=palestin&Cr1The head of the United Nations relief agency for Palestinian refugees today urged the international community to strengthen support for the refugees, particularly the youth who constitute an increasingly significant segment of the population.

Filippo Grandi, the Commissioner-General of the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), said that at a time of growing demands for fundamental freedoms and better living conditions across the Middle East, the world must redouble its efforts to find a just and lasting solution to the Palestinian issue, in consultation with the refugees.

In an address to the opening session of UNRWA’s Advisory Commission, Mr. Grandi urged delegates to consider the agency’s continuing relevance and its mission of human development and humanitarian support.

UNRWA is the only UN agency directly providing essential services in education, health, microfinance and social safety-net support to Palestinian refugees.

Mr. Grandi highlighted the dire situation many Palestinian refugees face, particularly those in the in the occupied Palestinian territory of Gaza and the West Bank, including East Jerusalem.

He said that the issue of Israeli settlements expanding “relentlessly on Palestinian land, including in the East Jerusalem periphery,” had implications for a future Palestinian State. He voiced UNRWA’s grave concern over the humanitarian consequences of settlement expansion and the demolition of Palestinian homes and property.

“This deepens the isolation of Palestinians and creates fresh displacement,” he said.

Mr. Grandi pointed out that there are an estimated 3,000 demolition orders pending in the West Bank.

“The worst is yet to come, unless much more urgent and effective pressure is exercised to stop these abuses,” he warned.

He expressed gratitude to UNRWA’s donors, including Arab countries, for their support for the agency. Pledges from Arab donors this year stand at $144 million, including $44 million from the Gulf Cooperation Council through the Islamic Development Bank.

Mr. Grandi, however, voiced concern over the future funding of UNRWA, particularly resources urgently needed to sustain food and cash assistance to refugees most affected by poverty.

He appealed to Arab donors in particular to continue their trend of donating to the agency’s General Fund, which finances core services in education, health and support to the poorest refugees.

Monday, November 28, 2011

Thank YOU for your lovely Thank Yous with the photo- email & snail mail, as well as the reminder of the tax deductible portion of our gift. We very much appreciate your attention to detail, as well as your positive attitude.

The news on the Middle East appears totally bleak- per usual, and the cynics and naysayers are persistent- per usual... but rather than be totally turned off by all the negativity (and pervasive stupidity) cluttering up the information highway what a relief it is to have ATFP's admirable efforts hopefully helping lead the way towards an actual end to the Israel-Palestine conflict.

Poet's notepad always handy

By CHARLES LUSSIERThe Advocate

Published: Saturday, November 26, 2011 at 6:01 a.m.

BATON ROUGE, La. - Naomi Shihab Nye always keeps on her person a small pad of paper and a sharpened pencil.

That habit came in handy when she and her husband, Michael, were robbed on a bus during their South American honeymoon. One of the only things she had left was her paper and pencil. She sat down on a park bench and a poem, "a gift," flowed out of her, Nye said.

The resulting poem, "Kindness," - "Before you know what kindness is you must lose things". it starts - is among the best loved in a much decorated and recognized career as a professional poet.

The poem, which she read recently for students and faculty at Episcopal High gathered in the school's performing arts center, recently gained new currency during the financial downturn, appearing in two books.

"I never thought that poem would be quoted by Bernie Madoff victims," she said, shaking her head.

Nye has published several collections of poetry, winning several honors. She was elected a Chancellor of the Academy of American Poets in 2010.

Nye, a personal friend of Episcopal's Head of School Hugh McIntosh, visited Episcopal on her way back home to San Antonio from a reading at Tulane University in New Orleans.

She read for an hour to grades eight to 12, then spent another hour conducting a workshop with the senior class.

In the workshop, Nye said not just "Kindness" but many of her poems come from observations and scraps of dialogue she hears as she goes through life...READ MORE

BADIL Announces Al-Awda Award for the year 2012

Bethlehem, 22/11/2012 – BADIL Resource Center announces the 2012 Al-Awda Award. Badil has changed the award program in 2012 with regard to the procedure, conditions, categories and prices. This development and changes are based on BADIl’s annual plan which is aiming at strengthening programs and projects in order to promote the principles of a rights-based approach to the plight of Palestinian refugees and Internally Displaced Persons as well as promoting a creative public discourse about the ongoing Nakba (displacement) of Palestinians since 63 years.

Procedure Instead of organizing a one day award ceremony, BADIL divided the prize ceremony into three separate phases, each one ending with a national public event. This partition comes to activate and strengthen the overall efforts and common popular activities throughout the year. By such distribution, BADIL hopes to ensure an increase the opportunities of participation, quality and variety of the entries, as well as raising the level of interaction and fruitful results.

The program has been divided into 3 stages:Phase I: "Commemoration of the Nakba 64 " (May 2012) which includes two categories: "Best Poster of the Nakba Commemoration", and "Best Photographic Story".

The deadline for submitting entries is March 30, 2012. The names of the winners will be announced during the " Commemoration of the Nakba 64 ", by mid of May 2012.

Phase II: "World Refugee Day" (20 June 2012); consisting of two main categories: "Best Caricature" and "Best Photo for Youth under 18 Years Old."

The deadline for submitting entries is May 10, 2012. The names of the winners will be announced at the activities linked to the World Refugee Day on June 20th, 2012, at a popular event which will be organized by Badil.

The deadline for submitting the children stories is the 1st of September 2012 and the deadline for the submission of documentary films is on the 15th of October 2012. The names of the winners of both categories will be announced during a cultural and literary event which will be organized by Badil on 11th of December 2012.

Categories Two new categories were added. The first category is photographic story (4 photos that tell a story about a particular topic) for the age of over 18 years. The second category is a documentary film with the duration of maximum 5 minutes.

Prizes Although the value of the award is not intended to be of monetary value, BADIL reconsidered the amounts of each prize and rank in a manner that ensures a fair distribution within the different categories as much as possible.

More information concerning the categories and/or conditions of the Al-Awda Award 2012 can be found on the BADIL’s website at: www.badil.org

An iconic peace message from young Palestinians

Hundreds of students from United Nations schools near Jericho have created a massive aerial image of the dove of peace in conjunction with the world-renowned artist, John Quigley. Directed by Quigley, who has created mass aerial images from large groups of people for over a quarter of a century, they gathered in the dove formation at the foot of the Mount of Temptation in Jericho, reputed to be the oldest and lowest city on earth.

"This is a mirror image of Picasso's famous 'Peace Dove'. Palestinian youth are sending the message to 'love one another' and 'love all' so we can find a path to peace,” said Quigley. “These kids are planting seeds of hope into the heart of the Middle East conflict. They deserve the kind of positive future we wish for all children."

The students are from schools run by the United Nations Relief and Works Agency, UNRWA, which educates half a million children across the Middle East.

“The world needs to sit up and listen to the youth of this region,” said UNRWA Commissioner-General, Filippo Grandi. “Their message of peace is essential. It is the voice of the next generation.”

The image is being created as part of “Project Peace on Earth”, founded by Steve Robertson, which will stage a globally broadcast Musical Prayer for Peace concert from Bethlehem’s Manger Square on Christmas Day. "Our soul is defined by the music of our heart,” said Robertson. "When we listen towards that divinity and choose to express that joyful wisdom, the result is always peace."

Hundreds of Palestinian refugee students from UNRWA schools in Jericho formed Picasso's 'Peace Dove' and "LOVE ALL" at the foot of the Mount of Temptation in Jericho. The youth are demanding a peaceful future. The initiative was a partnership with international artist John Quigley and was supported by UNRWA, Project Peace on Earth and visitpalestine.ps

Hundreds of Palestinian students from United Nations schools in the Jericho area have created a massive aerial image of PICASO’s famous Dove of Peace in conjunction with the world-renowned artist, John Quigley.

Directed by Quigley, who has created mass aerial images from large groups of people for over a quarter of a century, they gathered in the dove formation at the foot of the Mount of Temptation in Jericho, reputed to be the oldest and lowest continuously inhabited city on earth.

"This is a mirror image of Picasso's famous 'Peace Dove'. Palestinian youth are sending the message to "Love One Another" and "Love All" so we can find a path to peace”, said Quigley. “These kids are planting seeds of hope into the heart of the middle east conflict. They deserve the kind of positive future we wish for all children."

The students that participated in the event are from schools run by the United Nations Relief and Works Agency, UNRWA, which educates half a million children across the Middle East. “The world needs to sit up and listen to the youth of this region”, said UNRWA Commissioner General, Filippo Grandi, “their message of peace is essential. It is the voice of the next generation.”

The image is being created as part of “Project Peace on Earth,” which together with visitpalestine.ps and UNRWA are working to stage a globally broadcast Musical Prayer for Peace concert from Bethlehem’s Manger Square on Christmas Day (December 25th 2011).